Spring Cleaning Your Calendar: Reclaiming Your Time

In the latest episode of Before Breakfast, host Laura Vandercam emphasizes that life is not a "set it and forget it" phenomenon. Just as our homes accumulate clutter over time, our schedules tend to become crowded with commitments that may no longer serve us. To avoid the trap of becoming increasingly busy, she suggests an active approach to "scrub things clean" through a process of calendar spring cleaning.

The Necessity of a Time Audit

Vandercam advocates for conducting a time audit to gain clarity on how our hours are actually spent. Whether you track your time for a full week or simply review your calendar and reflect on past weeknights and weekends, the goal is to categorize your activities: "What did you enjoy? What was okay? What felt like a drain? What felt like a waste of time?"

To determine what constitutes "clutter," she suggests a simple litmus test: "If someone proposed this right now, would you say yes?" If the answer is no, it may be time to extricate yourself from the commitment.

Challenging Recurring Commitments

One of the primary areas for optimization is recurring commitments. Vandercam argues that if meetings or social obligations do not "earn their place on your calendar each week," they should be re-evaluated. For instance, if a team meeting is no longer necessary because the team is "managing itself quite well," it is time to cancel it. Similarly, if you find yourself feeling relieved when a volunteer commitment is canceled, it is a clear signal that the activity is no longer right for you. She notes that if you cannot be "enthusiastically involved," it is better to allow your spot to go to someone who can.

Minimizing and Outsourcing

Beyond eliminating unnecessary tasks, listeners should look for ways to minimize or delegate:

• Right-sizing commitments: A 60-minute meeting can often be handled in 30 minutes, or even via a "five-minute Zoom check-in."
• Challenging social norms: Parents often feel they must attend every single practice or game for their children. Vandercam suggests that this is often an unsustainable goal, especially with multiple children. Instead, she proposes solutions like creating a "carpool" to open up space in the evenings, which serves as a "massive life boost" compared to spending time "scrolling around on phones" on the sidelines.
• Operational efficiency: Simple life hacks, such as making "double of Monday night's meal" for Wednesday, hiring a "weekly cleaning service," or choosing more convenient locations for errands, can significantly reduce the mental and physical load of daily life.

Conclusion: Making the Most of Our Time

Ultimately, the goal of spring cleaning your calendar is not to achieve a perfectly empty schedule, but to ensure that the things we do are meaningful and enjoyable. By choosing to "ignore, minimize, or outsource" the tasks that do not add value, we create the space needed to be more present and intentional in our lives. As Vandercam concludes, the process is about "making the most of our time" rather than just filling it.